Folding door.



c; H. ANDERSON.

FOLDING DOOR.

APPLIUATION FILED Nov. 26, 1909.

Patented May v16, 1911.

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G. H. ANDERSON.

FOLDING DOOR.

APPLIOATION FILED NOV. 26, 1909A Patented May 16 3 SHEETS-SHEET z.

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0.11. ANDERSON. FOLDING DOOR.

APPLICATION FILED 11017.26. 1909.

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CHARLES I-I. ANDERSON, OF SEATTLE, WASHINGTON.

FOLDING DOOR.

Specication of Letters Patent.

Patented May 16, 1911.

Application led November 26, 1909. Serial No. 530,013.

5 Of yvashington, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Folding Doors, of which the following is a specification.

My object is to provide a sectional door, of a construction permitting it to fold, in opening, into a comparatively small space, and equipped with improved operating mechanism which causes its opening and closing movements to be effected quickly and smoothly, and serves to hold the door securely in its opened and closed positions.

My improved door construction may be applied to entrances and exits generally,

where the opening and closing of the doorsis intended to be under the control of some one in authority, and it is particularly well adapted for interurban electric passenger cars, for which the embodiment, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, is especially designed.

Referring to the drawings-Figure 1 is a plan section taken at the floor or threshold beneath the doors; Fig. 2, a similar section in a higher plane showing the doors closed; Fig. 3, a view the same as Fig. 2, but showing the doors opened; Fig. 4, a plan sectional view of operating-mechanism for the doors located beneath the licor and showing the parts in the posit-ion they occupy when the door is closed; Fig. 5, a similar view showing the parts of the operating mechanism in the position they occupy when the doors are opened; Figs. 6 and 7 sectional plan views of the operating-mechanism, the sections being taken on lines 6 and 7 in Figs. 4 and 5; Fig. S, an enlarged broken fragmentary section taken on line S in Figs. 3 and 5; Fig. 9, a similar section taken on line 9 in Fig. 5; and Figs. 10 and 11 broken fragmentary sections taken, respectively, on lines 10 and 11 in Fig. S.

The doors in the present connection, as illustrated, are in the side of a car, which is of steel construction,12,12,being the thresh old, 13, 13, door-posts and 14 a center post which divides the opening in the side of the car into two doorways. Each doorway is fitted with a pair of right and left doors or. door-sections 15, 16, each comprising a pair of vertically extending members 17, 18, secured together by hinges 19. Two of the doors are hung by hinges 2O to the center post 14, and the other doors are hung by hinges 21 to the outer posts 13. The doors ef each pair meet when closed as indicated in Fig. 2, their free edges being faced, preferably, with rubber meeting strips 22, of the form shown in cross-section in Fig. 11, and held in place by fastening-plates 23. The doors are hung to swing inward, and the sections fold against each other as shown in Fig. 3. Each section 17 is provided on its inner face with a suitable handle 23a.

Extending through each threshold 12 are longitudinally extending slots 24, 25. Secured by means of brackets 26, 26a, against the underside of the threshold is a stationary guide-bar 27 extending parallel with the slots 24, Surrounding and sliding upon the bar 27 are sleeves or blocks 28, 28. 29, 29. The slides 28 are connected by a bar 30, formed on its inner side with a rack 31; and the slides 29 are joined by a bar 82 formed on its inner side with a rack 33. 1nter1nediate the bars 30, 32, and engaging both racks, is a pinion 34 carried by a horizontal operating shaft 85. The central bracket 26a forms a bearing for the end of the shaft 35, and confines the pinion 84, and it has guideopenings through it for the rack-bars 30, 32, as shown in Fig. 9.

Firmly secured to the lower part of each door-section 17 near its meeting-strip 22, is a non-rotary pin or lug 36, in effect an integral part of a plate 37 by which it is fastened to the door-member. The lugs 36 carried by the doors 15 extend downward through the slots 24, and the lugs 36 carried by the doors 16 extend downward through the slots 25. Keyed to each lug 86 beneath the threshold 12 is an arm 38. The arms 38 carried by the doors 15 are connected at their outer ends by means of links 39 with the sliding-blocks 28; and the arms 3S carried by the doors 16 are pivotally connected at their free ends by means of links 39 with the sliding blocks 29. i

When the doors are closed, turning' of the operating shaft 35 and pinion 34 in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 6 moves the racks and bars 30, 32 in opposite directions, sliding the blocks 29 in the direction to the right in Fig. Gand the blocks 28 in the opposite direction. The arms 38 extend, as indicated, at a slight angle to the doors whereby in the movement of the blocks in a straight line upon the guide-bar 27, the door-sections at the hinges 19 flex until,

when the lugs 36 near the ends of the slots 2li, F25, the doors are folded against each other and extend at right-angles to the doorways as illustrated in Fig. 3. To close the doors, the operating shaft and pinion are turned in the direction opposite to that described, thereby extending the door-members until their meeting edges 22 abut, as illustrated in Fig. 2. rlhe free edges of the door sections 1T it will be understood move in a straight line along the slots 24j, 25, the liening being at the hinges 19. The opening or closing of all the doors is produced by but two rotations of the operating' shaft, and the ope 1ation may therefore be very quick.

if desired, the door opening and closing mechanism described may be located above intsead of below the doorway, and other modiiications in the matter of details of construction may be made without departing from the spirit of my invention as deiined by the claims.

lNhat I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent isl. In combination, a door hung to swing horizontallyT on one edge and formed of vertical door-members hinged together in folding relation, a. stationary guide extending parallel with the door when closed, and door opening and closing means comprising a slide on the guide, operating means for reciprocating the slide longitudinally of the guide and a swinging link connecting said slide with one of said door-members.

Q'. in combination., a pair of oppositelyswinging doors,each hinged at one edge and formed of members hinged together in folding relation, a stationary guide extending parallel with both doors when closed, and openingand closing means for both doors comprising a pair of slides on the guide, swinging links connecting a member of each door with one of said slides, and means for moving the slides simultaneously in opposite directions along the guide.

3. ln combination, a plurality of doorways, a 'pair of horizontally-swinging right and left doors for each doorway, each door comprisingl vertical members hinged together in folding relation, a stationary guide, a separate slide for each door on the guide, swinginglinks connecting the slides, respectively, with a member of each door, a bar connecting the left-door slides, a bar connecting the right-door slides, and operating means for reciprocating said bars simultaneously in opposite directions, for the purpose set forth.

4. In combination, a doorway having a threshold provided with longitudinal guideslots, a plurality of horizontally swinging doors each hinged, at one edge, to the casing, and formed of foldingly hinged members, a. lug carried by one folding member on each door and projecting through one of said slots, and door-opening and closing means connected with said lugs.

5. ln combination, a plurality of doorways, a pair of horizontally and oppositely swinging doors in each doorway, each door comprising vertical members hinged together in folding relation, and movable door-opening and closing means comprising a pair of parallel oppositely movable rackbars each operatively connected with one door of each of said doorways, an operating shaft and a pinion on said shaft engaging both racks, all constructed to operate as and for the purpose set forth.

6. .et gate having two lai-partite barriers, the parts of each barrier being hinged together, in combination with a rack attached pivotally to one part of each barrier, remote from the hinge thereof, the other part of each barrier being supported pivotally at. a corresponding point remote from the hinge, means to guide the said pivot points toward and from each other, thereby folding and unfolding each barrier, and a fixed pinion engaging both racks, whereby movement of one barrier operates the other.

.7. A gate havingtwo bi-partite barriers, each being adapted to fold upon itself, in combination with a pinion lined in position and a rack connected. to one part of each barrier, engaging the pinion, whereby power applied to one part of one barrier moves both parts of both barriers.

8. A gate having two bi-part-ite barriers, each being adapted to fold upon itself, in combination with a pinion ixed in position and a rack connected to one part of each barrier, engaging the pinion, whereby power applied to one part moves all; a guide and brackets movable thereon, supporting one part of each barrier and guiding its folding movement, and means supporting the other part of such barrier.

9. A gate comprising a plurality of bipartite folding barriers arranged in pairs, alternate barriers forming sets movable in opposite directions, racks connected to each set, the rack of one set being continuous, and pinion connecting means between the racks of each set, whereby movement of one barrier moves all.

CHARLES H. ANDERSON.

In presence of- Monats B. SACHS, R. E. BANKS.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

